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Bristol Quakers hold vigil protesting police raid
Bristol Quakers held a silent vigil on Thursday to protest again a police raid.
They were joined by members of the public as well as other faith groups outside of Bridewell Police Station, in response to the recent raid by the Metropolitan Police on the Westminster Quaker Meeting House.
Over 100 people gathered in support of the six members of Youth Demand who were arrested Thursday, March 27.
They stood in silence, in the Quaker tradition, holding placards reading “We stand with the Quakers,” “We stand for the right to protest peacefully” and “We stand against aggressive policing laws.”
The police raid took place on 27 March when more than 20 police officers, some equipped with tasers, forced entry into Westminster Quaker Meeting House, in central London, breaking the lock on the door.
They arrested six young people who were attending what had been advertised as a ‘welcome meeting’ for Youth Demand, an activist group taking action on climate issues and Palestine.
This was not a Quaker meeting for worship, but a separate meeting by an external group who had hired one of the rooms.
Quakers have a long history of using their buildings and rooms to support people to organise for social justice, peace and climate action.
Julia Bush, a member of Redland Quaker Meeting said: “Quakers stand for peace and truth. In the 17th Century our Meeting Houses were raided and people were imprisoned for speaking their mind.
“It is shocking that the same can happen today. Police armed with tasers, breaking down the door of a Meeting House, is a violation of a sacred and safe space.”
Dave Mitchell, a member of Christian Climate Action, said: “As a Christian I am deeply concerned that the police chose to raid a place of worship.
“I am very supportive of the Quaker commitment to peace, equality, truth and sustainability.
“These beliefs lead us to challenge wrong-doing when we see it, particularly when it is being done by those in power and we have the right to act on our conscience by peacefully protesting.
“Aggressive policing of peaceful protesters is completely unjust and a backward step for our democracy.”
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They also condemned the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act in 2022 and the Public Order Act in 2023 that they say “allowed the raid to take place”.
At the time that these new laws were introduced much opposition was made by many, with ‘Kill The Bill’ protests held across the country, including several in Bristol.
This coincides with a Quaker Meeting for worship taking place in London, outside New Scotland Yard, to which Members of Parliament and members of the House of Lords had been invited.
Bristol resident, Sonia Crompton, said: “The heavy-handed and disproportionate policing of a peaceful meeting should concern us all.
“Since the introduction of these new anti-protest laws we’ve seen increasingly repressive policing of peaceful protest.”
A member of Defend Our Juries, Helen Gamsa, said: “We are seeing the slow eradication of our basic, democratic rights. If you want to challenge the status quo through peaceful protest you have few legal options now.”
A MET Police spokeperson has said: “Youth Demand have stated an intention to ‘shut down’ London over the month of April using tactics including ‘swarming’ and road blocks.
“While we absolutely recognise the importance of the right to protest, we have a responsibility to intervene to prevent activity that crosses the line from protest into serious disruption and other criminality.
“On Thursday, March 29 officers raided a Youth Demand planning meeting at an address in Westminster where those in attendance were plotting their April action.
“Six people were arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to cause a public nuisance. Five of those arrested on Thursday have been released on bail and one will face no further action.
“A further five arrests for the same offence were made on Friday, March 28. Four of the arrests were at addresses in London and one in Exeter. All five of those arrested on Friday have been released on bail.”
They also clarified that officers routinely carry Tasers as part of their personal protective equipment and at no point was a Taser drawn or used.
They reiterated that they are “not shutting down free speech, or protest – this was action against those from Youth Demand, conspiring to ‘shut down’ London, including by blocking roads, with all the disruption that would cause to the general public just trying to go about their day-to-day business.”
Main photo: Bristol Quakers
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